Donatas Banionis was a renowned Lithuanian actor, born Donatas Juozas Banionis on April 28, 1924, in Kaunas, Lithuania. His mother, Ona Blazhaitite-Banionene, was a homemaker, and his father, Juozas Banionis, was a tailor who took part in the Russian Revolution of 1917, was wounded in the Russian Civil War, and became a political prisoner. Young Banionis was raised with his elder sister during the years of Lithuanian independence before World War II.
Banionis began his acting career in 1941, when he was hired by the famous Lithuanian theatrical director Juozas Miltinis and became an actor at the newly formed Panevezys Drama Theatre. He studied acting under Juozas Miltinis and graduated from the Panevezys Acting Studio in 1945. His first major film work was the role of adventurer Daus in 'Adomas nori buti zmogumi' (Adam Wants to Be a Man, 1959) by director Vytautas Zalakevicius.
Before becoming an acclaimed actor, Banionis tried to escape from the Soviet Union at the end of World War II, but he failed to join his Lithuanian compatriots when they fled the Soviets. In 1970, as a member of an official Soviet delegation, he made his first visit to the Lithuanian community in Chicago. At that time, Banionis enjoyed a highly privileged life as a top film-star in the Soviet Union, and he was awarded the State Prize in 1975.
Banionis earned critical acclaim for his role of Vaitkus in 'Niekas ne norėjo mirti' (Nobody Wanted to Die, 1966) by director Vytautas Zalakevicius, a powerful film dubbed the "Lithuanian Seven Samurai." He demonstrated his range as a comedian in the comic role of a priest in 'Beregis avtomobilya' (Watch Out for the Automobile, 1966) by director Eldar Ryazanov.
Donatas Banionis is a refined intellectual actor with effortless style. His mastery of timing, his powerful silence, and his reserved energy shine in his major film-works, such as in 'King Lear' (1969) by Grigoriy Kozintsev, in 'Solaris' (1972) by Andrei Tarkovsky, in 'Goya - oder Der arge Weg der Erkenntnis' (1971) by director Konrad Wolf, and in other films.
One of his memorable film-works is the character of a Russian spy 'Ladeinikov' in 'Myortvy Sezon' (The Dead Season, 1968) by director Savva Kulish. That film role provided Banionis with an auspicious connection, as he had a meeting with the Russian President Vladimir Putin in 2004. Mr. Putin confirmed that he made up his mind to become an intelligence officer after seeing Banionis in the role of a Russian spy.
In his later works, Donatas Banionis constitutes the link between cinema of the past and contemporary Lithuanian film. He showed reserved and convincing work in the role of 'The old man' in 'Kiemas' (Courtyard, 1999),a reflective film about a Lithuanian father and his family's depressing fate in the 1970's Soviet Union. He worked with director Aleksandr Buravskiy in 'Attack on Leningrad' (2006),a film about the historic siege during the Second World War.
During his acting career spanning over sixty-five years, Donatas Banionis played over 50 roles in film and on television. He also played over 100 stage roles, mainly at the Panevezys Juozas Miltinis' Drama Theatre. Banionis was designated People's Actor of the USSR (1974),and People's actor of the Lithuanian Republic (1973). He is Chevalier of the Order of the Lithuanian Grand Duke Gediminas.
Donatas Banionis lived in the city of Panevezys, Lithuania. He was Honorable Citizen of Panevezys (1999). Actor died of heart-related problems on September 4, 2014, in Panevezys, Lithuania, at the age of ninety.
